If there has been a real
number two person in the White House of President Donald Trump it is not Vice
President Mike Pence. The apparently indispensable man has been Jared
Kushner and as the president’s son-in- law, a man also seemingly
untouchable. But that was before reports surfaced that last
December, Kushner met with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak and sought to
set up a secret communication channel with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The White House used up
two of its most credible assets- National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster and
Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly – to make the case that there was really
nothing abnormal in what Kushner was doing as “back channels” have historically
been used to communicate out of the limelight, sometimes with adversaries.

Here in Washington this
past week, that cover story has come under intense skepticism, as there is very
little precedent for a president-elect to have secret contacts with an
adversary before his inauguration, and especially when that adversary stands
accused of meddling in the just concluded American election. The fact that
Kushner reportedly discussed using Russian communications facilities strongly
suggests that he wanted to conceal Trump’s Russian conversations from the Obama
administration, raising the question, what were they trying to hide?

This is a cover story
that smells a lot like another cover-up in the Trump campaign’s attempts to
deny any complicity in Russia’s hacking and propaganda efforts to hurt Hillary
Clinton and help Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential vote. John McCain
(R-Ariz) is one of the few Republicans openly critical of a benign
explanation of Kushner’s talks with the Russians.Meanwhile, reporting out of the White House
itself indicates that Kushner may no longer be quite so indispensable or even
untouchable. Ultimately, only Trump himself will decide that, but there have
been rumblings that Trump has been critical of Kushner’s advice that he fire
former FBI Director James Comey. Evidently he told Trump that such a move would
be popular, even among Democrats. That clearly was wrong. In fact, the
Comey dismissal led directly to the appointment of former FBI Director Robert
Mueller as special council which has focused even greater public attention on
the Russian investigation. This was the last thing Trump wanted. And given
Trump’s refusal to ever accept personal blame when things go wrong,
Kushner’s once absolute hold on White House power, may now be diminished.

The Russian probe moved
ever closer to the White House this past week. In addition to the problems of
Kushner, Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen was among those hearing from
Congressional investigative committees asking for documents. Cohen dismissed
the requests as a “fishing expedition” but said he would responded if he were
to be subpoenaed. Small wonder some veteran reporters with Trump contacts are
hearing that the president is feeling “alone” and “angry”, which frankly may be
cause for concern.

Also on the bad news for
Trump front, his first overseas trip, which initially was given a C plus by
some analysts has been down-graded this past week. His speech and demeanor in
Saudi Arabia were reexamined in the light of the contrasts between how the
president interacted with autocratic Sunni kings and princes – and
how he later treated our decades old democratic friends in NATO and the
European Union.

Remember, virtually all
acts of international terrorism have been committed or inspired by the Islamic
State and al Qaeda who are Sunni Muslims. They are nearly all products of Saudi
Arabia’s own highly conservative and harsh Wahhabi sect of Islam. These
terrorists also continue to receive tangible financial support from Sunni Arab
states led by Saudi Arabia. Trump mentioned this in his speech but made no
attempt to link this behavior to the billions of dollars worth of sophisticated
weapons he agreed to sell them. In my view his greatest mistake was to totally
align the United States to the Sunnis in their power struggle with Shiite Iran.
That raises the ante in the Sunni/Shiite power struggle in the region that
will not end well.

One could say Trump
escaped unscathed during his stops at the Vatican and in Israel, although the
Pope looked grumpy. And the notion that Trump will get Israel and the
Palestinians to make peace without offering the slightest suggestion as to how
that might happen, strongly implies he is not serious.

Just how much of a
debacle Trump’s involvement in the NATO summit in Brussels and the Group of
Seven in Taormina, Italy, was evident in the faces of America’s allies as he
publicly berated their contributions to post WWII peace and stability, even as
he refused to publicly state America’s ironclad commitment to their
security. It was by far the worst performance of a U.S. president at any
International event I have ever seen, and I have witnessed many of them over
fifty years.

But the opinion that
really mattered was delivered at the end of a contentious week by German
Chancellor Angela Merkel, the most prominent leader in Europe and perhaps
America’s most important political and economic ally. Europe, she said, “really
must take our fate into our own hands.” Without mentioning Trump by name she added,
the days when Europe could rely on others, “was over to a certain extent. This
is what I have experienced in the last few days.” Trump’s reported decision to
pull out of the Paris Climate Accords, adds insult to that injury.

Hearing Merkel’s words,
said more in sorrow than in anger, how could anyone possibly imagine that
Trump’s trip was anything but an unmitigated disaster? To think otherwise
indicates a complete lack of understanding of contemporary history and no
appreciation for the central and positive role this country has played in the
post war era. In the thirty years that I lived and reported from abroad there
was never a time when the United States was so isolated from its allies, and
soon to be so friendless. Trump has given Putin a victory - beyond
Russia’s wildest dreams.